Systems and methods for providing pixelation and depixelation animations for media content

ABSTRACT

Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable media can detect a trigger to initiate at least one of a pixelation animation or a depixelation animation for a media content item. A set of pixelated images can be generated based on a source image associated with the media content item. Variable durations for presenting the set of pixelated images can be determined. The set of pixelated images can be presented, based on the variable durations, to produce the at least one of the pixelation animation or the depixelation animation.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/531,473, filed on Nov. 3, 2014 entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FORPROVIDING PIXELATION AND DEPIXELATION ANIMATIONS FOR MEDIA CONTENT”,which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present technology relates to the field of media content processing.More particularly, the present technology relates to techniques forproviding pixelation and depixelation animations for media content.

BACKGROUND

Today, people utilize computing devices (or systems) for variouspurposes. Users of computing devices can interact with one another,access content, share content, and create content. Users can use theircomputing devices, for example, to send messages to one another, browseweb sites, access online resources, interact with social networks, andcreate media content, such as by taking pictures and recording videos.

In some instances, a user can access a camera on his or her computingdevice. In one example, the user can launch a camera application (i.e.,app) on the computing device. Under conventional approaches, when theuser switches between a front-facing camera mode and a rear-facingcamera mode in the camera application, a display of the computing devicewill often fade or change into a live camera view in a substantiallystraightforward manner. In another example, when the user creates mediacontent to be transmitted, the transmission of the media contentgenerally appears to occur in a straightforward manner underconventional approaches. In a further example, in accordance withconventional approaches, when the user causes media content to beprovided in a thumbnail preview, the thumbnail preview is provided in anoverall straightforward manner. However, such conventional approachescan often times be uninteresting, monotonous, and lackluster. These andother concerns associated with conventional approaches can createchallenges for or reduce the overall user experience associated withprocessing or interacting with media content.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments of the present disclosure can include systems,methods, and non-transitory computer readable media configured to detecta trigger to initiate at least one of a pixelation animation or adepixelation animation for a media content item. A set of pixelatedimages can be generated based on a source image associated with themedia content item. Variable durations for presenting the set ofpixelated images can be determined. The set of pixelated images can bepresented, based on the variable durations, to produce the at least oneof the pixelation animation or the depixelation animation.

In an embodiment, the source image can have a source image resolutionsize. The generating of the set of pixelated images can further comprisescaling the source image at a first scale factor to produce, at leasttemporarily, a first image with a first reduced image resolution sizethat is less than the source image resolution size. The first image canbe enlarged to produce a first pixelated image having the source imageresolution size. The first pixelated image can be included in the set ofpixelated images. The source image can be scaled at a second scalefactor to produce, at least temporarily, a second image with a secondreduced image resolution size less than the source image resolutionsize. The second image can be enlarged to produce a second pixelatedimage having the source image resolution size. The second pixelatedimage can be included in the set of pixelated images.

In an embodiment, it can be determined, based on the trigger, toinitiate the pixelation animation. In some instances, the first reducedimage resolution size can be greater than the second reduced imageresolution. The presenting of the set of pixelated images can includepresenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting the secondpixelated image.

In an embodiment, it can be determined, based on the trigger, toinitiate the depixelation animation. In some cases, the first reducedimage resolution size can be less than the second reduced imageresolution. The presenting of the set of pixelated images can includepresenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting the secondpixelated image.

In an embodiment, the scaling of the source image can utilize a nearestneighbor algorithm.

In an embodiment, the trigger can be associated with at least one of aninstruction to switch between a rear-facing camera view and afront-facing camera view, an instruction to use the media content itemin a first communication to be transmitted, or a receipt of a secondcommunication including the media content item.

In an embodiment, the at least one of the pixelation animation or thedepixelation animation can be performed during a loading of a cameraview. In some cases, the at least one of the pixelation animation or thedepixelation animation can be completed within a time frame associatedwith the loading of the camera view.

In an embodiment, the media content item can correspond to a video. Thesource image can correspond to a video frame within in the video.

In an embodiment, the video frame can be selected based on one or moreuser instructions.

In an embodiment, the video frame can correspond to a first video frameof the video.

In an embodiment, the media content item can correspond to an image. Thesource image can correspond to the image.

In an embodiment, systems, methods, and non-transitory computer readablemedia of the disclosed technology can be configured to perform at leastone of progressively shrinking the set of pixelated images when beingpresented or progressively enlarging the set of pixelated images whenbeing presented.

In an embodiment, the at least one of the pixelation animation or thedepixelation animation can exclude one or more smoothing effects.

In an embodiment, the determining of the variable durations can be basedon an accelerated interpolation process.

In an embodiment, the variable durations can include at least a firstduration and a second duration. The set of pixelated images can includeat least a first pixelated image and a second pixelated image. The firstpixelated image can have a greater image pixel size than the secondpixelated image. In some instances, the accelerated interpolationprocess can cause the first pixelated image to be presented at the firstduration and the second pixelated image to be presented at the secondduration. The first duration can be longer in time than the secondduration.

In an embodiment, the depixelation animation can occur within anallowable time deviation from when the media content item is completelyloaded.

Many other features and embodiments of the invention will be apparentfrom the accompanying drawings and from the following detaileddescription.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example pixelation/depixelation animation moduleconfigured to facilitate providing pixelation and depixelationanimations for media content, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example trigger detection module configured tofacilitate providing pixelation and depixelation animations for mediacontent, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example pixelated images module configured tofacilitate providing pixelation and depixelation animations for mediacontent, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example duration determination module configuredto facilitate providing pixelation and depixelation animations for mediacontent, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5A illustrates an example scenario associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5B illustrates an example scenario associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6A illustrates an example scenario associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6B illustrates an example scenario associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example method associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates a network diagram of an example system that can beutilized in various scenarios, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a computer system that can be utilizedin various scenarios, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

The figures depict various embodiments of the disclosed technology forpurposes of illustration only, wherein the figures use like referencenumerals to identify like elements. One skilled in the art will readilyrecognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments ofthe structures and methods illustrated in the figures can be employedwithout departing from the principles of the disclosed technologydescribed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Providing Pixelation and Depixelation Animations for Media Content

People use computing devices (or systems) for a wide variety ofpurposes. Computing devices can provide different kinds offunctionality. Users can utilize their computing devices to produceinformation, access information, and share information. In some cases,users can use their computing devices to produce information in the formof media content. For example, users can use one or more cameras ontheir computing devices to create media content items, such as by takingpictures and recording videos.

In some instances, a camera of a computing device (or system) can beutilized by various applications or software running on the computingdevice. In one example, an operating system of the computing device canprovide a default camera application (i.e., app) that utilizes thecamera to take pictures and record videos. In another example, socialnetworking applications, social media applications, and communicationsapplications can utilize the camera to capture pictures and videos to bestored, shared, or transmitted. In a further example, media editingapplications, such as image enhancing applications, can also utilize thecamera to generate media content items.

However, under conventional approaches, utilizing computing devicecameras and providing media content items can often times beuninteresting, boring, or lacking in entertainment value. In oneexample, conventional approaches to loading a live camera view, such aswhen switching between front-facing and rear-facing camera views, can bestraightforward and boring. In another example, transmitting or sharingmedia content items in accordance with conventional approaches canappear to be monotonous and unentertaining. In a further example,conventional approaches to previewing media content items, such as viathumbnails, can also be straightforward and uninteresting.

Therefore, an improved approach to utilizing cameras and processingmedia content can be beneficial for addressing or alleviating variousconcerns associated with conventional approaches. Various embodiments ofthe present disclosure can detect a trigger to initiate at least one ofa pixelation animation or a depixelation animation for a media contentitem. In general, the pixelation animation can correspond to ananimation in which displayed visuals or graphics become progressivelymore pixelated or obscured. The pixelation animation can correspond toan animation in which displayed visuals or graphics become progressivelyless pixelated or become more unobscured. In some embodiments, a set ofpixelated images can be generated based on a source image associatedwith the media content item. Variable durations for presenting the setof pixelated images can be determined. The set of pixelated images canbe presented, based on the variable durations, to produce the at leastone of the pixelation animation or the depixelation animation. It iscontemplated that many variations are possible.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example pixelation/depixelation animation module102 configured to facilitate providing pixelation and depixelationanimations for media content, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. As shown in the example of FIG. 1, thepixelation/depixelation animation module can include a trigger detectionmodule 104, a pixelated images module 106, a duration determinationmodule 108, and a presentation module 110. The components shown in thisfigure and all figures herein are exemplary only, and otherimplementations may include additional, fewer, integrated, or differentcomponents. Some components may not be shown so as not to obscurerelevant details.

In some embodiments, the example pixelation/depixelation animationmodule 102 can be implemented, in part or in whole, as software,hardware, or any combination thereof. In general, a module as discussedherein can be associated with software, hardware, or any combinationthereof. In some implementations, one or more functions, tasks, and/oroperations of modules can be carried out or performed by softwareroutines, software processes, hardware components, and/or anycombination thereof. In some cases, the example pixelation/depixelationanimation module 102 can be implemented as software running on one ormore computing devices or systems, such as a user or client computingdevice. In one example, the pixelation/depixelation animation module 102can be implemented within an operating system of the user or clientcomputing device. In another example, the pixelation/depixelationanimation module 102 can be implemented as an application, a program, oran applet, etc., running on the user or client computing device. Itshould be understood that many variations are possible.

The trigger detection module 104 can be configured to facilitatedetecting a trigger to initiate at least one of a pixelation animationor a depixelation animation for a media content item. Whether thepixelation animation or the depixelation animation is to be initiatedfor the media content item can depend on the trigger that is detected.Some triggers can cause the pixelation animation to be initiated. Sometriggers can cause the depixelation animation to be initiated. Sometriggers can cause both the pixelation animation and the depixelationanimation to be initiated. More details regarding the trigger detectionmodule will be provided with reference to FIG. 2.

The pixelated images module 106 can be configured to facilitategenerating a set of pixelated images based on a source image associatedwith the media content item. The pixelated images can be generated tocorrespond to images of the source image having undergone varyingdegrees of pixelation. A more detailed discussion relating to thepixelated images module will be provided below with reference to FIG. 3.

The duration determination module 108 can be configured to facilitatedetermining variable durations for presenting the set of pixelatedimages. In some cases, a first pixelated image in the set of pixelatedimages can be presented for a first duration, while a second pixelatedimage in the set of pixelated images can be presented for a secondduration, and a third pixelated image in the set of pixelated images canbe presented for a third duration, and so forth. In one example, thefirst duration can be longer in time than the second duration, which canbe longer in time than the third duration. In another example, the firstduration can be shorter in time than the second duration, which can beshorter in time than the third duration. In a further example, thefirst, second, and third durations can be of an equivalent length oftime. More details relating to the duration determination module will beprovided below with reference to FIG. 4.

The presentation module 110 can be configured to facilitate presentingthe set of pixelated images, based on the variable durations, to producethe at least one of the pixelation animation or the depixelationanimation. In some embodiments, the presentation module 110 can causeeach generated pixelated image in the set to be presented (e.g.,rendered, displayed, etc.) at a respective variable duration, such thatthe presenting of all the pixelated images in the set results in thepixelation animation or the depixelation animation for the media contentitem.

In one example, the media content item can correspond to a video. Thepixelation animation or the depixelation animation can be produced(and/or provided, presented, displayed, etc.) for the video. Thepixelation animation or the depixelation animation can be provided as anenhancement, an extension, a prelude, an introduction, or a visualembellishment, etc., to the video. Again, the source image can beutilized in the generating of the set of pixelated images, and thepixelated images can be used for producing the animation(s). In thisexample, the source image can be selected as a video frame within in thevideo. In some cases, the video frame can be selected to correspond to afirst video frame of the video. In some instances, the video frame canbe selected based on one or more user instructions, such as an usercommand to select a current video frame during a playback of the video.

In another example, the media content item can correspond to an image.The pixelation animation or the depixelation animation can be producedfor the image. The pixelation or depixelation animation can be providedor presented as an enhancement, an extension, a prelude, anintroduction, or a visual embellishment, etc., to the image. In somecases, the source image can correspond to the image, which is the mediacontent item in this example. As such, the set of pixelated images canbe generated based on the image (e.g., the media content item). It iscontemplated that there can be many variations or other possibilities.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example trigger detection module 202 configured tofacilitate providing pixelation and depixelation animations for mediacontent, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the trigger detection module 104 can be implemented as theexample trigger detection module 202. As discussed previously, thetrigger detection module 202 can be configured to detect a trigger toinitiate at least one of a pixelation animation or a depixelationanimation for a media content item. In some instances, the pixelationanimation can be set to initiate when the trigger is detected. In somecases, the depixelation animation can be set to initiate when thetrigger is detected. In the example of FIG. 2, the trigger detectionmodule 202 can include a camera mode module 204 and a media contentcommunication detection module 206.

The camera mode module 204 can be configured to detect the loading of acamera view, such as a live or real-time camera view. In some cases, thecamera view can be loaded when a camera application or feature islaunched. In one example, when a computing device (or system) has afront-facing camera and a rear-facing camera, the camera view can beloaded and switched between a front-facing camera view and a rear-facingcamera view, such as when a user of the computing device taps orinteracts with a “Selfie” button or a flip camera button. In someimplementations, the camera mode module 204 can detect a trigger in theform of an instruction, such as a user command, to switch between therear-facing camera view and the front-facing camera view.

The media content communication detection module 206 can be configuredto detect a trigger in the form of an instruction to use a media contentitem in a communication to be transmitted. In some implementations, theuser of the computing device can create the media content item. The usercan, in some cases, draw on the media content item, write text on themedia content item, or otherwise edit the media content item. The usercan elect to use the media content item in a communication to betransmitted, such as by attaching the media content item to thecommunication for transmission. In one example, the pixelation ordepixelation animation is initiated when the media content item appearsto get attached to the communication or prepares to be transmitted inthe communication.

Moreover, the media content communication detection module 206 can beconfigured to detect a receipt of a communication including the mediacontent item. In some implementations, the receiving of thecommunication including the media content item can correspond to atrigger for initiating the pixelation or depixelation animation. In oneexample, the media content item is attached to a communication that isreceived. In this example, the media content item can be “locked” andobscured (e.g., pixelated). When the media content item is “unlocked,”the depixelation animation can be initiated to cause the media contentto be unobscured and displayed in full resolution. It should beappreciated that many variations are possible.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example pixelated images module 302 configured tofacilitate providing pixelation and depixelation animations for mediacontent, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the pixelated images module 106 can be implemented as theexample pixelated images module 302. As discussed above, the pixelatedimages module 302 can be configured to facilitate generating a set ofpixelated images based on a source image associated with the mediacontent item. In the example of FIG. 3, the pixelated images module 302can include a scaling module 304 and an enlarging module 306.

The source image associated with the media content item can have asource image resolution size. The pixelated images module 302 can beconfigured to facilitate generating the set of pixelated images. In someimplementations, the scaling module 304 can facilitate the generating ofthe set of pixelated images by scaling the source image at a first scalefactor to produce, at least temporarily, a first image with a firstreduced image resolution size that is less than the source imageresolution size. In some embodiments, the scaling of the source imagecan utilize a nearest neighbor algorithm.

Moreover, the enlarging module 306 can facilitate the generating of theset of pixelated images by enlarging the first image to produce a firstpixelated image having the source image resolution size. The firstpixelated image can be included in the set of pixelated images.Furthermore, the scaling module 304 can scale the source image at asecond scale factor to produce, at least temporarily, a second imagewith a second reduced image resolution size less than the source imageresolution size. The enlarging module 306 can enlarge the second imageto produce a second pixelated image having the source image resolutionsize. The second pixelated image can also be included in the set ofpixelated images. It should be understood that the scaling and enlargingtechniques can be utilized numerous times to facilitate the generatingof the set of pixelated images.

As discussed previously, the pixelation animation (e.g., instead of thedepixelation animation) can be initiated based on the trigger. In someinstances, for the pixelation animation, the first reduced imageresolution size can be greater than the second reduced image resolution,and the providing or presenting of the set of pixelated images caninclude presenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting thesecond pixelated image.

Additionally, the depixelation animation (e.g., instead of thepixelation animation) can be initiated based on the trigger. In somecases, for the depixelation animation, the first reduced imageresolution size can be less than the second reduced image resolution,and the presenting of the set of pixelated images can include presentingthe first pixelated image prior to presenting the second pixelatedimage.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example duration determination module 402configured to facilitate providing pixelation and depixelationanimations for media content, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. In some embodiments, the duration determination module 108can be implemented as the example duration determination module 402. Asdiscussed above, the duration determination module 402 can be configuredto facilitate determining variable durations for presenting the set ofpixelated images. In the example of FIG. 4, the duration determinationmodule 402 can include a linear interpolator module 404 and anaccelerated interpolator module 406.

In some implementations, the determining of the variable durations canbe based on a linear interpolation process. Accordingly, the linearinterpolator module 404 can cause each of the variable durations to beset or restricted to a constant value. For example, the linearinterpolator module 404 can cause a first duration of a presentation ofa first pixelated image in the set of pixelated images to be 0.2seconds, and can cause a second duration of a presentation of a secondpixelated image in the set to be 0.2 seconds as well. Moreover, thelinear interpolator module 404 can cause a third duration of apresentation of a third pixelated image in the set of pixelated imagesto also be 0.2 seconds, and so forth. It follows that the animation canspend equal amounts of time (i.e., durations) presenting or displayingthe varying levels of pixelation.

In some embodiments, the determining of the variable durations can bebased on an accelerated interpolation process. As such, the acceleratedinterpolator module 406 can cause the variable durations to be set todifferent values. In one example, for a pixelation animation, theaccelerated interpolator module 406 can cause the duration forpresenting a last pixelated image in the set of pixelated images to be0.4 seconds, and can cause the duration for presenting a second to lastpixelated image in the set to be 0.2 seconds. Moreover, the acceleratedinterpolator module 406 can cause the duration for presenting a third tolast pixelated image in the set to be 0.1 seconds, and so forth. In thisexample, the last pixelated image can have a greater image pixel size(e.g., bigger pixels throughout) than the second to last pixelatedimage, and the second to last pixelated image can have a greater imagepixel size than the third to last pixelated image. Accordingly, theaccelerated interpolator module 406 can cause the pixelation animationto spend more time or a longer duration presenting those pixelatedimages that appear more pixelated and/or more blocky (e.g., that havebigger pixels), and less time or a shorter duration presenting thosepixelated images that appear less pixelated or more finely pixelated.

In another example, for a depixelation animation, the acceleratedinterpolator module 406 can cause the duration for presenting a firstpixelated image in the set to be 0.4 seconds, the duration forpresenting a second pixelated image in the set to be 0.2 seconds, andthe duration for presenting a third pixelated image in the set to be 0.1seconds, and so forth. In this example, the first pixelated image canhave a greater image pixel size than the second pixelated image, and thesecond pixelated image can have a greater image pixel size than thethird pixelated image. As such, the accelerated interpolator module 406can cause the depixelation animation to also spend more time (e.g.,longer durations) presenting those pixelated images that appear morepixelated and/or more blocky, and less time (e.g., shorter durations)presenting those pixelated images that appear less pixelated or morefinely pixelated.

It is contemplated that many variations are possible. For example, insome cases, decelerated interpolation can be utilized for the pixelationand/or depixelation animations.

FIG. 5A illustrates an example scenario 500 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. The scenario 500 illustratesone example approach for generating the set of pixelated images forproducing a pixelation animation.

In the example scenario 500 of FIG. 5A, there can be a source image 502.The source image can have a source image resolution size. The examplescenario 500 illustrates that the generating of the set of pixelatedimages can involve scaling the source image at a first scale factor(e.g., 50%, one half, etc.) to produce, at least temporarily, a firstimage 510 with a first reduced image resolution size that is less thanthe source image resolution size. The first image 510 can then beenlarged to produce a first pixelated image 512 having the source imageresolution size. The first pixelated image 512 can be included in theset of pixelated images. The source image 502 can be scaled at a secondscale factor (e.g., 25%, one fourth, etc.) to produce, at leasttemporarily, a second image 520 with a second reduced image resolutionsize less than the source image resolution size. The second image 520can be enlarged to produce a second pixelated image 522 having thesource image resolution size. The second pixelated image 522 can also beincluded in the set of pixelated images. In this example, the sourceimage 502 can be scaled at a third scale factor (e.g., 12.5%, oneeighth, etc.) to produce, at least temporarily, a third image 530 with athird reduced image resolution size less than the source imageresolution size. The third image 530 can be enlarged to produce a thirdpixelated image 532 having the source image resolution size. The thirdpixelated image 532 can also be included in the set of pixelated images.In the example scenario 500, the first pixelated image 512 can bepresented before the second pixelated image 522, which can be presentedbefore the third pixelated image 532, in order to produce the pixelationanimation. It is understood that more or fewer pixelated images can begenerated and included in the set of pixelated images to producepixelation or depixelation animations.

FIG. 5B illustrates an example scenario 550 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. The scenario 550 illustratesone example approach for generating the set of pixelated images forproducing a depixelation animation.

In the example scenario 550 of FIG. 5B, the first pixelated image 512,the second pixelated image 522, and the third pixelated image 532 can begenerated as described above. In this example, the third pixelated image532 can be presented before the second pixelated image 522, which can bepresented before the first pixelated image 512, in order to produce thedepixelation animation. Many variations are possible.

FIG. 6A illustrates an example scenario 600 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. The example scenario 600illustrates a pixelation animation being provided or presented whenswitching between a rear-facing camera view and a front-facing cameraview. In this example, a user can have inputted an instruction (e.g.,tapped on a “Selfie” button, activated a flip camera mode, etc.) tocause a switching or flipping between the rear-facing camera view andthe front-facing camera view. As discussed above, this can trigger aninitiation of the pixelation animation.

In this example, the user can cause the camera view to switch or flip.In the first stage 602, the displayed visuals or graphics can correspondto a last screenshot of the camera view when the user inputted theinstruction to switch or flip the camera view. This last screenshot canbe used as the source image for the pixelation animation. The secondstage 604 illustrates a camera view flipping animation in conjunctionwith the pixelation animation. The third stage 606 illustrates thecamera view flipping animation and the pixelation animation progressingfurther. The fourth stage 608 illustrates the camera view flippinganimation and the pixelation animation progressing even further. Itshould be appreciated that, in some embodiments, a depixelationanimation can be initiated additionally or alternatively.

In some implementations, the pixelation animation or the depixelationanimation can be performed during a loading of a camera view. In someinstances, the at least one of the pixelation animation or thedepixelation animation can be completed within a time frame associatedwith the loading of the camera view. For example, pixelation ordepixelation animation can be completed during the switching (e.g.,flipping) of the camera view.

FIG. 6B illustrates an example scenario 650 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. The example scenario 650illustrates a progressively shrinking of the set of pixelated imageswhen being presented. In this example, the shrinking animation and apixelation animation can be provided, presented, and/or displayed inconjunction. The first stage 652 illustrates an beginning of theshrinking animation and the pixelation animation. The second stage 654illustrates the shrinking animation and the pixelation animationprogressing along. The third stage 656 illustrates the shrinkinganimation and the pixelation animation further progressing. The fourthstage 658 illustrates the shrinking and pixelation animationsprogressing even further. It is contemplated that a progressivelyenlarging of the set of pixelated images when being presented is alsopossible. It should also be appreciated that a depixelation animationcan be utilized.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method 700 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. It should be appreciated thatthere can be additional, fewer, or alternative steps performed insimilar or alternative orders, or in parallel, within the scope of thevarious embodiments unless otherwise stated.

At block 702, the example method 700 can detect a trigger to initiate atleast one of a pixelation animation or a depixelation animation for amedia content item. At block 704, the example method 700 can generate aset of pixelated images based on a source image associated with themedia content item. At block 706, the example method 700 can determinevariable durations for presenting the set of pixelated images. At block708, the example method 700 can present the set of pixelated images,based on the variable durations, to produce the at least one of thepixelation animation or the depixelation animation.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example method 800 associated with providingpixelation and depixelation animations for media content, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. Again, it should be appreciatedthat there can be additional, fewer, or alternative steps performed insimilar or alternative orders, or in parallel, within the scope of thevarious embodiments unless otherwise stated.

At block 802, the example method 800 can scale a source image at a firstscale factor to produce a first image with a first reduced imageresolution size less than a source image resolution size. At block 804,the example method 800 can enlarge the first image to produce a firstpixelated image having the source image resolution size. The firstpixelated image can be included in the set of pixelated images. At block806, the example method 800 can scale the source image at a second scalefactor to produce a second image with a second reduced image resolutionsize less than the source image resolution size. At block 808, theexample method 800 can enlarge the second image to produce a secondpixelated image having the source image resolution size. The secondpixelated image can be included in the set of pixelated images. Thescaling and enlarging can be repeated for any number of times to createa desired pixelation or depixelation animation.

In some embodiments, the at least one of the pixelation animation or thedepixelation animation can exclude one or more smoothing effects. Thiscan allow for the pixelation to be more visible, such as by appearingblockier. Otherwise, smoothing effects can cause the pixelation toappear blurry.

In some embodiments, the depixelation animation (or pixelationanimation) can occur within an allowable time deviation from when themedia content item is completely loaded. For example, a pixelated orobscured version of the media content item can be presented while themedia content item is being downloaded (or loaded). At substantially thetime when the downloading finishes, the depixelation animation can beprovided and then the downloaded (e.g., full resolution, unobscured,non-pixelated, etc.) version of the media content item can be provided,presented, and/or displayed.

Again, it is contemplated that there can be many other uses,applications, and/or variations associated with the various embodimentsof the present disclosure. In some instances, various embodiments can beutilized in conjunction with a “pay-to-play” approach to interactivelysharing or exchanging content (e.g., also referred to as “Shots,” or“Slingshot”). In this approach, for example, a recipient of content,which is included in a received communication, must “pay a cost” orexert some specified effort, such as by providing additional content ina reply to the received communication, in order to fully access thecontent in the received communication. Furthermore, in some cases,various embodiments of the present disclosure can learn, improve, and/orbe refined over time.

Social Networking System—Example Implementation

FIG. 9 illustrates a network diagram of an example system 900 that canbe utilized in various scenarios, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. The system 900 includes one or more user devices910, one or more external systems 920, a social networking system (orservice) 930, and a network 950. In an embodiment, the social networkingservice, provider, and/or system discussed in connection with theembodiments described above may be implemented as the social networkingsystem 930. For purposes of illustration, the embodiment of the system900, shown by FIG. 9, includes a single external system 920 and a singleuser device 910. However, in other embodiments, the system 900 mayinclude more user devices 910 and/or more external systems 920. Incertain embodiments, the social networking system 930 is operated by asocial network provider, whereas the external systems 920 are separatefrom the social networking system 930 in that they may be operated bydifferent entities. In various embodiments, however, the socialnetworking system 930 and the external systems 920 operate inconjunction to provide social networking services to users (or members)of the social networking system 930. In this sense, the socialnetworking system 930 provides a platform or backbone, which othersystems, such as external systems 920, may use to provide socialnetworking services and functionalities to users across the Internet.

The user device 910 comprises one or more computing devices that canreceive input from a user and transmit and receive data via the network950. In one embodiment, the user device 910 is a conventional computersystem executing, for example, a Microsoft Windows compatible operatingsystem (OS), Apple OS X, and/or a Linux distribution. In anotherembodiment, the user device 910 can be a device having computerfunctionality, such as a smart-phone, a tablet, a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, etc. The user device 910 isconfigured to communicate via the network 950. The user device 910 canexecute an application, for example, a browser application that allows auser of the user device 910 to interact with the social networkingsystem 930. In another embodiment, the user device 910 interacts withthe social networking system 930 through an application programminginterface (API) provided by the native operating system of the userdevice 910, such as iOS and ANDROID. The user device 910 is configuredto communicate with the external system 920 and the social networkingsystem 930 via the network 950, which may comprise any combination oflocal area and/or wide area networks, using wired and/or wirelesscommunication systems.

In one embodiment, the network 950 uses standard communicationstechnologies and protocols. Thus, the network 950 can include linksusing technologies such as Ethernet, 702.11, worldwide interoperabilityfor microwave access (WiMAX), 3G, 4G, CDMA, GSM, LTE, digital subscriberline (DSL), etc. Similarly, the networking protocols used on the network950 can include multiprotocol label switching (MPLS), transmissioncontrol protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), User Datagram Protocol(UDP), hypertext transport protocol (HTTP), simple mail transferprotocol (SMTP), file transfer protocol (FTP), and the like. The dataexchanged over the network 950 can be represented using technologiesand/or formats including hypertext markup language (HTML) and extensiblemarkup language (XML). In addition, all or some links can be encryptedusing conventional encryption technologies such as secure sockets layer(SSL), transport layer security (TLS), and Internet Protocol security(IPsec).

In one embodiment, the user device 910 may display content from theexternal system 920 and/or from the social networking system 930 byprocessing a markup language document 914 received from the externalsystem 920 and from the social networking system 930 using a browserapplication 912. The markup language document 914 identifies content andone or more instructions describing formatting or presentation of thecontent. By executing the instructions included in the markup languagedocument 914, the browser application 912 displays the identifiedcontent using the format or presentation described by the markuplanguage document 914. For example, the markup language document 914includes instructions for generating and displaying a web page havingmultiple frames that include text and/or image data retrieved from theexternal system 920 and the social networking system 930. In variousembodiments, the markup language document 914 comprises a data fileincluding extensible markup language (XML) data, extensible hypertextmarkup language (XHTML) data, or other markup language data.Additionally, the markup language document 914 may include JavaScriptObject Notation (JSON) data, JSON with padding (JSONP), and JavaScriptdata to facilitate data-interchange between the external system 920 andthe user device 910. The browser application 912 on the user device 910may use a JavaScript compiler to decode the markup language document914.

The markup language document 914 may also include, or link to,applications or application frameworks such as FLASH™ or Unity™applications, the SilverLight™ application framework, etc.

In one embodiment, the user device 910 also includes one or more cookies916 including data indicating whether a user of the user device 910 islogged into the social networking system 930, which may enablemodification of the data communicated from the social networking system930 to the user device 910.

The external system 920 includes one or more web servers that includeone or more web pages 922 a, 922 b, which are communicated to the userdevice 910 using the network 950. The external system 920 is separatefrom the social networking system 930. For example, the external system920 is associated with a first domain, while the social networkingsystem 930 is associated with a separate social networking domain. Webpages 922 a, 922 b, included in the external system 920, comprise markuplanguage documents 914 identifying content and including instructionsspecifying formatting or presentation of the identified content.

The social networking system 930 includes one or more computing devicesfor a social network, including a plurality of users, and providingusers of the social network with the ability to communicate and interactwith other users of the social network. In some instances, the socialnetwork can be represented by a graph, i.e., a data structure includingedges and nodes. Other data structures can also be used to represent thesocial network, including but not limited to databases, objects,classes, meta elements, files, or any other data structure. The socialnetworking system 930 may be administered, managed, or controlled by anoperator. The operator of the social networking system 930 may be ahuman being, an automated application, or a series of applications formanaging content, regulating policies, and collecting usage metricswithin the social networking system 930. Any type of operator may beused.

Users may join the social networking system 930 and then add connectionsto any number of other users of the social networking system 930 to whomthey desire to be connected. As used herein, the term “friend” refers toany other user of the social networking system 930 to whom a user hasformed a connection, association, or relationship via the socialnetworking system 930. For example, in an embodiment, if users in thesocial networking system 930 are represented as nodes in the socialgraph, the term “friend” can refer to an edge formed between anddirectly connecting two user nodes.

Connections may be added explicitly by a user or may be automaticallycreated by the social networking system 930 based on commoncharacteristics of the users (e.g., users who are alumni of the sameeducational institution). For example, a first user specifically selectsa particular other user to be a friend. Connections in the socialnetworking system 930 are usually in both directions, but need not be,so the terms “user” and “friend” depend on the frame of reference.Connections between users of the social networking system 930 areusually bilateral (“two-way”), or “mutual,” but connections may also beunilateral, or “one-way.” For example, if Bob and Joe are both users ofthe social networking system 930 and connected to each other, Bob andJoe are each other's connections. If, on the other hand, Bob wishes toconnect to Joe to view data communicated to the social networking system930 by Joe, but Joe does not wish to form a mutual connection, aunilateral connection may be established. The connection between usersmay be a direct connection; however, some embodiments of the socialnetworking system 930 allow the connection to be indirect via one ormore levels of connections or degrees of separation.

In addition to establishing and maintaining connections between usersand allowing interactions between users, the social networking system930 provides users with the ability to take actions on various types ofitems supported by the social networking system 930. These items mayinclude groups or networks (i.e., social networks of people, entities,and concepts) to which users of the social networking system 930 maybelong, events or calendar entries in which a user might be interested,computer-based applications that a user may use via the socialnetworking system 930, transactions that allow users to buy or sellitems via services provided by or through the social networking system930, and interactions with advertisements that a user may perform on oroff the social networking system 930. These are just a few examples ofthe items upon which a user may act on the social networking system 930,and many others are possible. A user may interact with anything that iscapable of being represented in the social networking system 930 or inthe external system 920, separate from the social networking system 930,or coupled to the social networking system 930 via the network 950.

The social networking system 930 is also capable of linking a variety ofentities. For example, the social networking system 930 enables users tointeract with each other as well as external systems 920 or otherentities through an API, a web service, or other communication channels.The social networking system 930 generates and maintains the “socialgraph” comprising a plurality of nodes interconnected by a plurality ofedges. Each node in the social graph may represent an entity that canact on another node and/or that can be acted on by another node. Thesocial graph may include various types of nodes. Examples of types ofnodes include users, non-person entities, content items, web pages,groups, activities, messages, concepts, and any other things that can berepresented by an object in the social networking system 930. An edgebetween two nodes in the social graph may represent a particular kind ofconnection, or association, between the two nodes, which may result fromnode relationships or from an action that was performed by one of thenodes on the other node. In some cases, the edges between nodes can beweighted. The weight of an edge can represent an attribute associatedwith the edge, such as a strength of the connection or associationbetween nodes. Different types of edges can be provided with differentweights. For example, an edge created when one user “likes” another usermay be given one weight, while an edge created when a user befriendsanother user may be given a different weight.

As an example, when a first user identifies a second user as a friend,an edge in the social graph is generated connecting a node representingthe first user and a second node representing the second user. Asvarious nodes relate or interact with each other, the social networkingsystem 930 modifies edges connecting the various nodes to reflect therelationships and interactions.

The social networking system 930 also includes user-generated content,which enhances a user's interactions with the social networking system930. User-generated content may include anything a user can add, upload,send, or “post” to the social networking system 930. For example, a usercommunicates posts to the social networking system 930 from a userdevice 910. Posts may include data such as status updates or othertextual data, location information, images such as photos, videos,links, music or other similar data and/or media. Content may also beadded to the social networking system 930 by a third party. Content“items” are represented as objects in the social networking system 930.In this way, users of the social networking system 930 are encouraged tocommunicate with each other by posting text and content items of varioustypes of media through various communication channels. Suchcommunication increases the interaction of users with each other andincreases the frequency with which users interact with the socialnetworking system 930.

The social networking system 930 includes a web server 932, an APIrequest server 934, a user profile store 936, a connection store 938, anaction logger 940, an activity log 942, and an authorization server 944.In an embodiment of the invention, the social networking system 930 mayinclude additional, fewer, or different components for variousapplications. Other components, such as network interfaces, securitymechanisms, load balancers, failover servers, management and networkoperations consoles, and the like are not shown so as to not obscure thedetails of the system.

The user profile store 936 maintains information about user accounts,including biographic, demographic, and other types of descriptiveinformation, such as work experience, educational history, hobbies orpreferences, location, and the like that has been declared by users orinferred by the social networking system 930. This information is storedin the user profile store 936 such that each user is uniquelyidentified. The social networking system 930 also stores data describingone or more connections between different users in the connection store938. The connection information may indicate users who have similar orcommon work experience, group memberships, hobbies, or educationalhistory. Additionally, the social networking system 930 includesuser-defined connections between different users, allowing users tospecify their relationships with other users. For example, user-definedconnections allow users to generate relationships with other users thatparallel the users' real-life relationships, such as friends,co-workers, partners, and so forth. Users may select from predefinedtypes of connections, or define their own connection types as needed.Connections with other nodes in the social networking system 930, suchas non-person entities, buckets, cluster centers, images, interests,pages, external systems, concepts, and the like are also stored in theconnection store 938.

The social networking system 930 maintains data about objects with whicha user may interact. To maintain this data, the user profile store 936and the connection store 938 store instances of the corresponding typeof objects maintained by the social networking system 930. Each objecttype has information fields that are suitable for storing informationappropriate to the type of object. For example, the user profile store936 contains data structures with fields suitable for describing auser's account and information related to a user's account. When a newobject of a particular type is created, the social networking system 930initializes a new data structure of the corresponding type, assigns aunique object identifier to it, and begins to add data to the object asneeded. This might occur, for example, when a user becomes a user of thesocial networking system 930, the social networking system 930 generatesa new instance of a user profile in the user profile store 936, assignsa unique identifier to the user account, and begins to populate thefields of the user account with information provided by the user.

The connection store 938 includes data structures suitable fordescribing a user's connections to other users, connections to externalsystems 920 or connections to other entities. The connection store 938may also associate a connection type with a user's connections, whichmay be used in conjunction with the user's privacy setting to regulateaccess to information about the user. In an embodiment of the invention,the user profile store 936 and the connection store 938 may beimplemented as a federated database.

Data stored in the connection store 938, the user profile store 936, andthe activity log 942 enables the social networking system 930 togenerate the social graph that uses nodes to identify various objectsand edges connecting nodes to identify relationships between differentobjects. For example, if a first user establishes a connection with asecond user in the social networking system 930, user accounts of thefirst user and the second user from the user profile store 936 may actas nodes in the social graph. The connection between the first user andthe second user stored by the connection store 938 is an edge betweenthe nodes associated with the first user and the second user. Continuingthis example, the second user may then send the first user a messagewithin the social networking system 930. The action of sending themessage, which may be stored, is another edge between the two nodes inthe social graph representing the first user and the second user.Additionally, the message itself may be identified and included in thesocial graph as another node connected to the nodes representing thefirst user and the second user.

In another example, a first user may tag a second user in an image thatis maintained by the social networking system 930 (or, alternatively, inan image maintained by another system outside of the social networkingsystem 930). The image may itself be represented as a node in the socialnetworking system 930. This tagging action may create edges between thefirst user and the second user as well as create an edge between each ofthe users and the image, which is also a node in the social graph. Inyet another example, if a user confirms attending an event, the user andthe event are nodes obtained from the user profile store 936, where theattendance of the event is an edge between the nodes that may beretrieved from the activity log 942. By generating and maintaining thesocial graph, the social networking system 930 includes data describingmany different types of objects and the interactions and connectionsamong those objects, providing a rich source of socially relevantinformation.

The web server 932 links the social networking system 930 to one or moreuser devices 910 and/or one or more external systems 920 via the network950. The web server 932 serves web pages, as well as other web-relatedcontent, such as Java, JavaScript, Flash, XML, and so forth. The webserver 932 may include a mail server or other messaging functionalityfor receiving and routing messages between the social networking system930 and one or more user devices 910. The messages can be instantmessages, queued messages (e.g., email), text and SMS messages, or anyother suitable messaging format.

The API request server 934 allows one or more external systems 920 anduser devices 910 to call access information from the social networkingsystem 930 by calling one or more API functions. The API request server934 may also allow external systems 920 to send information to thesocial networking system 930 by calling APIs. The external system 920,in one embodiment, sends an API request to the social networking system930 via the network 950, and the API request server 934 receives the APIrequest. The API request server 934 processes the request by calling anAPI associated with the API request to generate an appropriate response,which the API request server 934 communicates to the external system 920via the network 950. For example, responsive to an API request, the APIrequest server 934 collects data associated with a user, such as theuser's connections that have logged into the external system 920, andcommunicates the collected data to the external system 920. In anotherembodiment, the user device 910 communicates with the social networkingsystem 930 via APIs in the same manner as external systems 920.

The action logger 940 is capable of receiving communications from theweb server 932 about user actions on and/or off the social networkingsystem 930. The action logger 940 populates the activity log 942 withinformation about user actions, enabling the social networking system930 to discover various actions taken by its users within the socialnetworking system 930 and outside of the social networking system 930.Any action that a particular user takes with respect to another node onthe social networking system 930 may be associated with each user'saccount, through information maintained in the activity log 942 or in asimilar database or other data repository. Examples of actions taken bya user within the social networking system 930 that are identified andstored may include, for example, adding a connection to another user,sending a message to another user, reading a message from another user,viewing content associated with another user, attending an event postedby another user, posting an image, attempting to post an image, or otheractions interacting with another user or another object. When a usertakes an action within the social networking system 930, the action isrecorded in the activity log 942. In one embodiment, the socialnetworking system 930 maintains the activity log 942 as a database ofentries. When an action is taken within the social networking system930, an entry for the action is added to the activity log 942. Theactivity log 942 may be referred to as an action log.

Additionally, user actions may be associated with concepts and actionsthat occur within an entity outside of the social networking system 930,such as an external system 920 that is separate from the socialnetworking system 930. For example, the action logger 940 may receivedata describing a user's interaction with an external system 920 fromthe web server 932. In this example, the external system 920 reports auser's interaction according to structured actions and objects in thesocial graph.

Other examples of actions where a user interacts with an external system920 include a user expressing an interest in an external system 920 oranother entity, a user posting a comment to the social networking system930 that discusses an external system 920 or a web page 922 a within theexternal system 920, a user posting to the social networking system 930a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or other identifier associated with anexternal system 920, a user attending an event associated with anexternal system 920, or any other action by a user that is related to anexternal system 920. Thus, the activity log 942 may include actionsdescribing interactions between a user of the social networking system930 and an external system 920 that is separate from the socialnetworking system 930.

The authorization server 944 enforces one or more privacy settings ofthe users of the social networking system 930. A privacy setting of auser determines how particular information associated with a user can beshared. The privacy setting comprises the specification of particularinformation associated with a user and the specification of the entityor entities with whom the information can be shared. Examples ofentities with which information can be shared may include other users,applications, external systems 920, or any entity that can potentiallyaccess the information. The information that can be shared by a usercomprises user account information, such as profile photos, phonenumbers associated with the user, user's connections, actions taken bythe user such as adding a connection, changing user profile information,and the like.

The privacy setting specification may be provided at different levels ofgranularity. For example, the privacy setting may identify specificinformation to be shared with other users; the privacy settingidentifies a work phone number or a specific set of related information,such as, personal information including profile photo, home phonenumber, and status. Alternatively, the privacy setting may apply to allthe information associated with the user. The specification of the setof entities that can access particular information can also be specifiedat various levels of granularity. Various sets of entities with whichinformation can be shared may include, for example, all friends of theuser, all friends of friends, all applications, or all external systems920. One embodiment allows the specification of the set of entities tocomprise an enumeration of entities. For example, the user may provide alist of external systems 920 that are allowed to access certaininformation. Another embodiment allows the specification to comprise aset of entities along with exceptions that are not allowed to access theinformation. For example, a user may allow all external systems 920 toaccess the user's work information, but specify a list of externalsystems 920 that are not allowed to access the work information. Certainembodiments call the list of exceptions that are not allowed to accesscertain information a “block list”. External systems 920 belonging to ablock list specified by a user are blocked from accessing theinformation specified in the privacy setting. Various combinations ofgranularity of specification of information, and granularity ofspecification of entities, with which information is shared arepossible. For example, all personal information may be shared withfriends whereas all work information may be shared with friends offriends.

The authorization server 944 contains logic to determine if certaininformation associated with a user can be accessed by a user's friends,external systems 920, and/or other applications and entities. Theexternal system 920 may need authorization from the authorization server944 to access the user's more private and sensitive information, such asthe user's work phone number. Based on the user's privacy settings, theauthorization server 944 determines if another user, the external system920, an application, or another entity is allowed to access informationassociated with the user, including information about actions taken bythe user.

In some embodiments, the user device 910 can include apixelation/depixelation animation module 918. Thepixelation/depixelation animation module 918 can, for example, beimplemented as the pixelation/depixelation animation module 102 ofFIG. 1. The pixelation/depixelation animation module 918 can beconfigured to detect a trigger to initiate at least one of a pixelationanimation or a depixelation animation for a media content item. Thepixelation/depixelation animation module 918 can also be configured togenerate a set of pixelated images based on a source image associatedwith the media content item. Further, the pixelation/depixelationanimation module 918 can be configured to determine variable durationsfor presenting the set of pixelated images. Moreover, thepixelation/depixelation animation module 918 can be configured topresent the set of pixelated images, based on the variable durations, toproduce the at least one of the pixelation animation or the depixelationanimation. Other features of the pixelation/depixelation animationmodule 918 are discussed herein in connection with thepixelation/depixelation animation module 102.

Hardware Implementation

The foregoing processes and features can be implemented by a widevariety of machine and computer system architectures and in a widevariety of network and computing environments. FIG. 10 illustrates anexample of a computer system 1000 that may be used to implement one ormore of the embodiments described herein in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. The computer system 1000 includes sets ofinstructions for causing the computer system 1000 to perform theprocesses and features discussed herein. The computer system 1000 may beconnected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the computer system 1000 may operate in the capacity of aserver machine or a client machine in a client-server networkenvironment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed)network environment. In an embodiment of the invention, the computersystem 1000 may be the social networking system 930, the user device910, and the external system 1020, or a component thereof. In anembodiment of the invention, the computer system 1000 may be one serveramong many that constitutes all or part of the social networking system930.

The computer system 1000 includes a processor 1002, a cache 1004, andone or more executable modules and drivers, stored on acomputer-readable medium, directed to the processes and featuresdescribed herein. Additionally, the computer system 1000 includes a highperformance input/output (I/O) bus 1006 and a standard I/O bus 1008. Ahost bridge 1010 couples processor 1002 to high performance I/O bus1006, whereas I/O bus bridge 1012 couples the two buses 1006 and 1008 toeach other. A system memory 1014 and one or more network interfaces 1016couple to high performance I/O bus 1006. The computer system 1000 mayfurther include video memory and a display device coupled to the videomemory (not shown). Mass storage 1018 and I/O ports 1020 couple to thestandard I/O bus 1008. The computer system 1000 may optionally include akeyboard and pointing device, a display device, or other input/outputdevices (not shown) coupled to the standard I/O bus 1008. Collectively,these elements are intended to represent a broad category of computerhardware systems, including but not limited to computer systems based onthe x86-compatible processors manufactured by Intel Corporation of SantaClara, Calif., and the x86-compatible processors manufactured byAdvanced Micro Devices (AMD), Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif., as well as anyother suitable processor.

An operating system manages and controls the operation of the computersystem 1000, including the input and output of data to and from softwareapplications (not shown). The operating system provides an interfacebetween the software applications being executed on the system and thehardware components of the system. Any suitable operating system may beused, such as the LINUX Operating System, the Apple Macintosh OperatingSystem, available from Apple Computer Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., UNIXoperating systems, Microsoft® Windows® operating systems, BSD operatingsystems, and the like. Other implementations are possible.

The elements of the computer system 1000 are described in greater detailbelow. In particular, the network interface 1016 provides communicationbetween the computer system 1000 and any of a wide range of networks,such as an Ethernet (e.g., IEEE 802.3) network, a backplane, etc. Themass storage 1018 provides permanent storage for the data andprogramming instructions to perform the above-described processes andfeatures implemented by the respective computing systems identifiedabove, whereas the system memory 1014 (e.g., DRAM) provides temporarystorage for the data and programming instructions when executed by theprocessor 1002. The I/O ports 1020 may be one or more serial and/orparallel communication ports that provide communication betweenadditional peripheral devices, which may be coupled to the computersystem 1000.

The computer system 1000 may include a variety of system architectures,and various components of the computer system 1000 may be rearranged.For example, the cache 1004 may be on-chip with processor 1002.Alternatively, the cache 1004 and the processor 1002 may be packedtogether as a “processor module”, with processor 1002 being referred toas the “processor core”. Furthermore, certain embodiments of theinvention may neither require nor include all of the above components.For example, peripheral devices coupled to the standard I/O bus 1008 maycouple to the high performance I/O bus 1006. In addition, in someembodiments, only a single bus may exist, with the components of thecomputer system 1000 being coupled to the single bus. Moreover, thecomputer system 1000 may include additional components, such asadditional processors, storage devices, or memories.

In general, the processes and features described herein may beimplemented as part of an operating system or a specific application,component, program, object, module, or series of instructions referredto as “programs”. For example, one or more programs may be used toexecute specific processes described herein. The programs typicallycomprise one or more instructions in various memory and storage devicesin the computer system 1000 that, when read and executed by one or moreprocessors, cause the computer system 1000 to perform operations toexecute the processes and features described herein. The processes andfeatures described herein may be implemented in software, firmware,hardware (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit), or anycombination thereof.

In one implementation, the processes and features described herein areimplemented as a series of executable modules run by the computer system1000, individually or collectively in a distributed computingenvironment. The foregoing modules may be realized by hardware,executable modules stored on a computer-readable medium (ormachine-readable medium), or a combination of both. For example, themodules may comprise a plurality or series of instructions to beexecuted by a processor in a hardware system, such as the processor1002. Initially, the series of instructions may be stored on a storagedevice, such as the mass storage 1018. However, the series ofinstructions can be stored on any suitable computer readable storagemedium. Furthermore, the series of instructions need not be storedlocally, and could be received from a remote storage device, such as aserver on a network, via the network interface 1016. The instructionsare copied from the storage device, such as the mass storage 1018, intothe system memory 1014 and then accessed and executed by the processor1002. In various implementations, a module or modules can be executed bya processor or multiple processors in one or multiple locations, such asmultiple servers in a parallel processing environment.

Examples of computer-readable media include, but are not limited to,recordable type media such as volatile and non-volatile memory devices;solid state memories; floppy and other removable disks; hard diskdrives; magnetic media; optical disks (e.g., Compact Disk Read-OnlyMemory (CD ROMS), Digital Versatile Disks (DVDs)); other similarnon-transitory (or transitory), tangible (or non-tangible) storagemedium; or any type of medium suitable for storing, encoding, orcarrying a series of instructions for execution by the computer system1000 to perform any one or more of the processes and features describedherein.

For purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the description. It will beapparent, however, to one skilled in the art that embodiments of thedisclosure can be practiced without these specific details. In someinstances, modules, structures, processes, features, and devices areshown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the description.In other instances, functional block diagrams and flow diagrams areshown to represent data and logic flows. The components of blockdiagrams and flow diagrams (e.g., modules, blocks, structures, devices,features, etc.) may be variously combined, separated, removed,reordered, and replaced in a manner other than as expressly describedand depicted herein.

Reference in this specification to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”,“other embodiments”, “one series of embodiments”, “some embodiments”,“various embodiments”, or the like means that a particular feature,design, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure. Theappearances of, for example, the phrase “in one embodiment” or “in anembodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarilyall referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternativeembodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, whetheror not there is express reference to an “embodiment” or the like,various features are described, which may be variously combined andincluded in some embodiments, but also variously omitted in otherembodiments. Similarly, various features are described that may bepreferences or requirements for some embodiments, but not otherembodiments.

The language used herein has been principally selected for readabilityand instructional purposes, and it may not have been selected todelineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter. It is thereforeintended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detaileddescription, but rather by any claims that issue on an application basedhereon. Accordingly, the disclosure of the embodiments of the inventionis intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of theinvention, which is set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:generating, by a computing system, a set of pixelated images based on asource image associated with a media content item, wherein eachpixelated image in the set of pixelated images has a greater image pixelsize than the source image and wherein generation of each pixelatedimage includes skewing the source image at an increasingly greaterangle; and presenting, by the computing system, the set of pixelatedimages in a particular order to produce at least one of a pixelationanimation or a depixelation animation for the media content item,wherein the set of pixelated images is presented in an order ofincreasing pixel size of each pixelated image to produce the pixelationanimation and the set of pixelated images is presented in an order ofdecreasing pixel size of each pixelated image to produce thedepixelation animation.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein the source image has a source image resolution size, and whereinthe generating of the set of pixelated images further comprises: scalingthe source image at a first scale factor to produce, at leasttemporarily, a first image with a first reduced image resolution sizethat is less than the source image resolution size; enlarging the firstimage to produce a first pixelated image having the source imageresolution size, the first pixelated image being included in the set ofpixelated images; scaling the source image at a second scale factor toproduce, at least temporarily, a second image with a second reducedimage resolution size less than the source image resolution size; andenlarging the second image to produce a second pixelated image havingthe source image resolution size, the second pixelated image beingincluded in the set of pixelated images.
 3. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 2, further comprising: determining to initiate thepixelation animation, wherein the first reduced image resolution size isgreater than the second reduced image resolution, and wherein thepresenting of the set of pixelated images includes presenting the firstpixelated image prior to presenting the second pixelated image.
 4. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 2, further comprising: determiningto initiate the depixelation animation, wherein the first reduced imageresolution size is less than the second reduced image resolution, andwherein the presenting of the set of pixelated images includespresenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting the secondpixelated image.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, whereinthe scaling of the source image utilizes a nearest neighbor algorithm.6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least oneof the pixelation animation or the depixelation animation is presentedin association with at least one of an instruction to switch between arear-facing camera view and a front-facing camera view, an instructionto use the media content item in a first communication to betransmitted, or a receipt of a second communication including the mediacontent item.
 7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein themedia content item corresponds to a video, and wherein the source imagecorresponds to a video frame in the video.
 8. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 1, wherein the media content item corresponds to animage, and wherein the source image corresponds to the image.
 9. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising determiningvariable durations for the presenting of the set of pixelated imagesbased on an accelerated interpolation process.
 10. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the variable durationsinclude at least a first duration and a second duration, wherein the setof pixelated images includes at least a first pixelated image and asecond pixelated image, wherein the first pixelated image has a greaterimage pixel size than the second pixelated image, wherein theaccelerated interpolation process causes the first pixelated image to bepresented at the first duration and the second pixelated image to bepresented at the second duration, and wherein the first duration islonger in time than the second duration.
 11. A system comprising: atleast one processor; and a memory storing instructions that, whenexecuted by the at least one processor, cause the system to perform:generating a set of pixelated images based on a source image associatedwith a media content item, wherein each pixelated image in the set ofpixelated images has a greater image pixel size than the source imageand wherein generation of each pixelated image includes skewing thesource image at an increasingly greater angle; and presenting the set ofpixelated images in a particular order to produce at least one of apixelation animation or a depixelation animation for the media contentitem, wherein the set of pixelated images is presented in an order ofincreasing pixel size of each pixelated image to produce the pixelationanimation and the set of pixelated images is presented in an order ofdecreasing pixel size of each pixelated image to produce thedepixelation animation.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the sourceimage has a source image resolution size, and wherein the generating ofthe set of pixelated images further comprises: scaling the source imageat a first scale factor to produce, at least temporarily, a first imagewith a first reduced image resolution size that is less than the sourceimage resolution size; enlarging the first image to produce a firstpixelated image having the source image resolution size, the firstpixelated image being included in the set of pixelated images; scalingthe source image at a second scale factor to produce, at leasttemporarily, a second image with a second reduced image resolution sizeless than the source image resolution size; and enlarging the secondimage to produce a second pixelated image having the source imageresolution size, the second pixelated image being included in the set ofpixelated images.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the instructionsfurther cause the system to perform: determining to initiate thepixelation animation, wherein the first reduced image resolution size isgreater than the second reduced image resolution, and wherein thepresenting of the set of pixelated images includes presenting the firstpixelated image prior to presenting the second pixelated image.
 14. Thesystem of claim 12, wherein the instructions further cause the system toperform: determining to initiate the depixelation animation, wherein thefirst reduced image resolution size is less than the second reducedimage resolution, and wherein the presenting of the set of pixelatedimages includes presenting the first pixelated image prior to presentingthe second pixelated image.
 15. The system of claim 11, wherein theinstructions further cause the system to perform determining variabledurations for the presenting of the set of pixelated images based on anaccelerated interpolation process.
 16. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium including instructions that, whenexecuted by at least one processor of a computing system, cause thecomputing system to perform a method comprising: generating a set ofpixelated images based on a source image associated with a media contentitem, wherein each pixelated image in the set of pixelated images has agreater image pixel size than the source image and wherein generation ofeach pixelated image includes skewing the source image at anincreasingly greater angle; and presenting the set of pixelated imagesin a particular order to produce at least one of a pixelation animationor a depixelation animation for the media content item, wherein the setof pixelated images is presented in an order of increasing pixel size ofeach pixelated image to produce the pixelation animation and the set ofpixelated images is presented in an order of decreasing pixel size ofeach pixelated image to produce the depixelation animation.
 17. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein thesource image has a source image resolution size, and wherein thegenerating of the set of pixelated images further comprises: scaling thesource image at a first scale factor to produce, at least temporarily, afirst image with a first reduced image resolution size that is less thanthe source image resolution size; enlarging the first image to produce afirst pixelated image having the source image resolution size, the firstpixelated image being included in the set of pixelated images; scalingthe source image at a second scale factor to produce, at leasttemporarily, a second image with a second reduced image resolution sizeless than the source image resolution size; and enlarging the secondimage to produce a second pixelated image having the source imageresolution size, the second pixelated image being included in the set ofpixelated images.
 18. The non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises: determining toinitiate the pixelation animation, wherein the first reduced imageresolution size is greater than the second reduced image resolution, andwherein the presenting of the set of pixelated images includespresenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting the secondpixelated image.
 19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumof claim 17, wherein the method further comprises: determining toinitiate the depixelation animation, wherein the first reduced imageresolution size is less than the second reduced image resolution, andwherein the presenting of the set of pixelated images includespresenting the first pixelated image prior to presenting the secondpixelated image.
 20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumof claim 16, wherein the method further comprises determining variabledurations for the presenting of the set of pixelated images based on anaccelerated interpolation process.